We're just two weeks from our SMB Digital Marketing Conference. That means we're gearing up to hear top notch speakers from Google, Facebook, Twitter Yelp and lots of other companies innovating and disrupting the world of SMB local marketing. I'm…
We've been looking at Austin's vibrant tech scene as we prep for Leading in Local: SMB Digital Marketing. There is a lot going on in the "weird" city, with many companies having local tech outposts there (SignPost, Radius, Vast.com, Hoovers,…
There's been lots of speculation around Apple's moves into local search and advertising over the past year. This has accelerated in the past 30 days with the acquisition of three different local mapping-related companies (and a failed Waze acquisition). We've…
Recently, I had the opportunity to speak with Ryan Roch who is a member of the partner team at Bigcommerce. This firm just made headlines recently by raising an additional $40m in venture capital. Bigcommerce has its headquarters in Sydney…
According to BIA/Kelsey's Media Ad View Plus, radio garnered nearly $14.7 billion in advertising revenue in 2012, representing over 11% of total advertising spend, placing it in fourth place behind direct mail, newspaper and television. Unlike other media, radio advertising…
We've always had "marketing" as a unique silo for SMBs. Now, a number of companies are looking at a bigger, more integrated picture that includes marketing and operations. It is Quikbook meet Amex meet Groupon. The idea is once you…
I was reading an article from Roy Greenslade, a former journalist from Ireland, about the woes of the newspaper industry in that country and couldn't help but think of the challenges local media faces here in the US. I wrote…
Yesterday at the Borrell, LSA, LMA Social + Mobile event at a Chicago airport hotel, Google executives made the case for Google+ as the centerpiece of an effective SMB digital presence before a roomful of current and potential resellers. The…
Despite the well documented declines in newspaper circulation, advertising on newspaper was $22.5 billion in 2012, representing 17.1% of total advertising spend in the U.S. and second only to direct mail, according to BIA/Kelsey's Media Ad View Plus. In a…
Our Leading in Local: SMB Digital Marketing event in Austin Sept. 11-13 keeps building and building. We’re expecting hundreds of real and honorary Texans, and overall, an inspiring event that should help define the next wave of SMB growth. In…
Groupon has been pushing hard to upgrade its merchant base from one-time partners to permanent clients with monthly sales goals. The latest initiative? A “Partner Network” for publishers willing to highlight Groupon deals in return for a piece of the…
The new digital environment is bringing about a “renaissance” for marketing, which can be defined as “meeting customer requirements,” notes Digitas and Razorfish Chairman Rishad Tobaccowala, who was interviewed at ShopLocal’s 8th Annual Retail Forum this week in Chicago by…
Seat Pagine Gialle, the troubled Italian search and directory company, placed its UK subsidiary Thomson Local into "administration" yesterday (the UK equivalent of receivership). Thomson immediately dismissed its field sales team in summary fashion. The company appeared poised for liquidation,…
In 2012, newspaper continued to lead the way in real estate advertising spending at $563 million (27.7%), followed closely by online advertising at $487 million (23.9%), according to Media Ad View Plus, BIA/Kelsey’s local market ad forecast report. 2012 Real…
Mobile local advertising's promise -- besides hyper-targeted ad placement -- has always been clearer ROI (enter John Wanamaker quote). This has taken form in "beyond-the-click" activity like call tracking and mapping/navigation. Location based data provider Placed has just taken this…
On this week's episode of BIA/Kelsey's new analyst round table series, we tackle the M&A activity that seems to be picking up all over the local media space. This is everything from Apple's recent mapping acquisitions to Yelp's moves in…
Yelp took a big step today that it had previously avoided for years: allowing mobile users to write reviews directly from their mobile devices. Recently tested through a selection of elite Yelp users, the feature is available starting today to…
Gannett Digital Marketing, the umbrella division of Gannett that includes ShopLocal, BlinQ, PointRoll, DealChicken, Key Ring and Clipper Magazine, relaunched today as G/O Digital. The new unit – which is adding a massive hub in a Chicago skyscraper, and is…
Tech world chatter over the past few weeks (including ours) zeroed in on Apple's back-to-back mapping acquisitions, what they mean, and who's next? After learning that mapping is a game won on data, Apple is buying it's way out of…
Last week, outgoing Yellow Media CEO Marc Tellier presided over his final earnings call and ended the call with a recitation of his accomplishments during his 12 years at the company's helm. Tellier leaves his post this week, with no…
